Wednesday, January 18, 2012

It took approximately two hours to lift a 500,000-gallon water tank up an 80-foot concrete column in Elgin, Oklahoma last week. Today you can watch it in 16 seconds.

Garver provided design and construction oversight to construct the city's water tower, and several project engineers were on hand to watch it go up. The 130,000-pound tank has a 58-foot diameter and a top height of 130 feet. Garver designed the concrete shaft with a welded steel tank to ensure stability and strength while being cost effective.

"The tank is specifically designed to withstand high winds common in southwest Oklahoma, as well as other climatic and geologic events," said Garver engineer Ian Toohey.

The composite elevated storage tank is part of a larger $1.7 million water system improvements project that includes rehabilitating water supply wells, constructing a transmission line into Elgin, and making several distribution system improvements.

Make sure to watch the video in full screen, and look closely at the top of the structure. Garver is well represented.

Construction Facts

The tank is designed to resist a wind shear of greater than 100 mph.

The structure is designed to handle more than 33 tons of snow accumulation.

The tank and foundation are designed to withstand a 7.5 magnitude earthquake.